The present invention relates to a fluid product dispenser comprising a fluid product pack intended to contain a fluid product and a case wherein the fluid product pack is housed.
Such a dispenser is particularly described in the document WO 00/21853 which describes a dispenser incorporating a pack in the form of a thermoformed body covered with a film. The body of the pack is also covered by a flap which partially or completely masks the body. A part of the flap may also extend onto the film which forms the rear face of the pack. In other words, the pack is placed inside a case which partially or completely masks the body. A part of the flap may also extend onto the film which forms the rear face of the pack. In other words, the pack is placed inside a case which partially or completely covers the pack. The pack, in addition to defining a container for the fluid product, also defines a dispensing orifice which is sealed before the first use with a removable sealing part intended to be folded back, broken or torn off to reveal the dispensing orifice. The removable sealing part is composed of a part connected to the body and the covering film. The flap covering the pack on the side of the thermoformed body does not extend onto the removable sealing part such that it remains permanently uncovered and accessible.
Another document of the prior art, i.e. the document DE 9309740 on which the foreword of the main claim is based, describes a dispenser of the same type comprising a fluid product pack placed in a case. Unlike the above-mentioned document of the prior art wherein the pack is attached inside the case, in this case, the pack is mounted sliding inside the case such that it is possible to take the pack out of the case. The pack is kept inside the case by inserting a raised surface formed by the body inside a slot in the case. In this document, no way of opening the pack is described. In any case, the pack comprises a dispensing orifice sealed before use by a removable part. Said removable part may be a part of the body and/or the film or a tab glued onto the dispensing orifice, that may be removed to form or uncover a dispensing orifice connected to the container.
To open the pack in this German document, it is necessary to extract the pack from the case completely as shown in the single figure in this document. Therefore, the sliding of the pack inside the case is completely free and unlimited. As a result, once the pack has been taken out of its case, the user has two separate items, the pack and the case, and it is necessary to reinsert the pack into the case to restore to the dispenser to its original state, which may be a relatively complicated operation. The user will tend to discard the case which is not of great use after the first use of the dispenser. Therefore, the case only contributes to the dispenser""s aesthetic effect when not in use.
The aim of the present invention is to improve such a fluid product dispenser such that it is possible to open the pack without dismantling the dispenser. Another aim of the present invention is to retain the aesthetic effect of the dispenser even after the pack has been opened. Another aim is to enable easier opening of the pack by encouraging the user to opt for a specific opening operation.
These aims are achieved according to the invention by means by a fluid product dispenser comprising:
a fluid product pack defining a fluid product container and a dispensing orifice, and a removable sealing part sealing the dispensing orifice,
a case wherein the fluid product pack is inserted by sliding so as to take the pack out of its case to remove the removable sealing part,
characterised in that stopping means are provided to limit the sliding of the pack in the case.
Therefore, it is not possible to take the pack completely out of the case simply by sliding. The case, which advantageously forms a sheath open at two opposite ends, offers access to the pack such that the user can pull or push the pack to slide it in the case. The invention provides for pull-type or push-type sliding stopping means on the pack to take it out of the case. Therefore, it is possible to slide the pack in the case over a limited distance which advantageously corresponds to the width of the removable sealing part so as only to uncover the removable sealing part when sliding comes to a stop.
According to a practical embodiment, the pull-type or push-type stopping means may comprise at least one slide inserted in a respective slot comprising at least one first slot end against which the slide comes to a stop at the end of sliding.
If the case can be pulled, it may advantageously comprise holding means to be able to hold the pack to pull it out of the case. According to a practical embodiment, the holding means comprise a slot in the case showing the pack to hold it at the sealing part. It is thus possible to hold the removable sealing part of the pack to pull it to a limited extent out of the case. It is also possible to use slides projected out of the slots of the case to move the pack in the case. In this case, the slides serve both as stopping means in conjunction with the slots and holding means to move the pack in the case.
Alternatively or in combination with the slide system inserted in a slot, the push-type stopping means may comprise a notch in the case uncovering the pack to be able to push it. The notch is used to push the pack using a finger to slide it in the case so as to take the removable sealing part out of the case at the other end. The slide stopping system inserted in a slot may be associated with this notch such that the user pushes the pack by inserting their finger in the notch until the slide comes to a stop on the first end of the slot. Alternatively, the slide system may be omitted and the insertion of the user""s finger into the notch continues until the finger comes to a stop at the rear of the notch. In this case, the rear of the notch forms the push-type stopping means.
According to an additional characteristic, the pull-type stopping means may comprise push-type sliding prevention means on the pack to take it out of the case. Symmetrically, the push-type stopping means may comprise pull-type sliding prevention means on the pack to take it out of the case. In a practical embodiment, the prevention means may comprise at least one slide inserted in a respective slot comprising a second slot end against which the slide is at a stop at the start of sliding. The prevention means, which form the initial stopping means, impose on the user one obligatory push-type or pull-type sliding direction. For example, in the case of pull-type sliding, the user who has initially tried to push on the pack will immediately understand that it is necessary to pull the pack to remove the removable sealing part from the case. This may be transposed symmetrically to the case of push-type sliding. The user is thus fully assisted in the use of the fluid product dispenser according to the invention. In one direction, the pack cannot slide, and in the other direction, it can only slide in a limited fashion.